Proposed Legislation Could Prevent Millions of Bird Deaths

“Building collisions are certainly among the greatest man-made killers of birds. Three hundred million to one billion birds or more die each year from collisions with glass on buildings—from skyscrapers to homes. While this legislation is limited to federal buildings, it’s a very good start that could lead to more widespread applications of bird-friendly designs elsewhere,” said Dr. Christine Sheppard, ABC Bird Collisions Campaign Manager.

In the most comprehensive study of its kind, “Bird–building Collisions in the United States: Estimates of Annual Mortality and Species Vulnerability” published in January 2014, the species most commonly reported as building kills (collectively representing 35 percent of all records) were White-throated Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Ovenbird, and Song Sparrow. However, the study found that some species are disproportionately vulnerable to building collisions. Several of these are birds of national conservation concern and fall victim primarily to certain building types. Those species include:

• Golden-winged Warbler and Canada Warbler at low-rises, high-rises, and overall
• Painted Bunting at low-rises and overall
• Kentucky Warbler at low-rises and high-rises
• Worm-eating Warbler at high-rises

More here:  http://www.abcbirds.org/newsandreports/releases/150513.html